USDA Amends Japanese Beetle Regulations

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is amending its Japanese beetle regulations by adding Colorado and Montana to the list of states protected from this destructive pest.

Due to the adverse climates in Colorado and Montana, these states did not request to be listed in USDA's original list of protected states established in 1970. However, recent review by APHIS' experts and state cooperators has determined that an increasing number of Japanese beetles are being discovered in these states at nurseries and airports in plant and nursery stock from eastern states. This amendment is necessary on an emergency basis to provide protection from the Japanese beetle during the 2003 season of Japanese beetle activity.

Adult Japanese beetles feed on the foliage and fruits of several hundred species of fruit trees, ornamental trees, shrubs, vines, field vegetable crops and turf. Japanese beetles are most active in late spring and early summer during hot, sunny days.